We’ve learned where not to affix a mezuzah. On today’s daf, the discussion turns to where one should affix it:
Rabbi Zeira says that Rav Mattana says that Shmuel says: It is a mitzvah to place it at the beginning of the upper third of the doorpost. And Rav Huna says: One raises it a handbreadth from the ground, or one distances it from the cross beam a handbreadth, and the entire entrance between those two handbreadths is fit for placing it.
Rabbi Zeira, quoting Rav Mattana, gives the opinion that the mezuzah should be fixed one third of the way down the doorpost — presumably close to eye level. Rav Huna offers a more liberal opinion that allows placement anywhere on the vertical doorpost, as long as it’s at least a handbreath above the ground and at least a handbreath below the lintel. Here’s another view:
Rabbi Yosei says: The verse states: “And you shall bind them for a sign upon your arm” (Deuteronomy 6:8), and then it states: “And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house.” (Deuteronomy 6:9) Just as the binding of tefillin is performed on the upper part of the arm, so too, the writing (i.e., mezuzah) must be on the upper part of the entrance.
Rabbi Yosei gives a third opinion with textual basis. The mitzvot describing tefillin and mezuzah are found in adjacent verses, which suggests that just as the arm tefillin is placed the upper portion of one’s arm, so too a mezuzah should be placed on the upper portion of one’s doorpost. Having covered the question about ideal vertical placement, the Gemara continues by discussing lateral placement. On a very wide doorframe, should the mezuzah be positioned closer to the home’s entrance or to the street?
Rava says: It is a mitzvah to place it in the handbreadth adjacent to the public domain. What is the reason for this? The rabbis say that it is in order that one encounter the mezuzah immediately. Rav Hanina from Sura says: It is in order that it protects.
On this point, the rabbis are in agreement: The mezuzah should be placed closer to the outside. But they disagree about the reasons why. The rabbis, envisioning a person walking into a home, want access to the mezuzah to be as immediate as possible, and so they advise placing it close to the street. Rav Hanina apparently views the mezuzah as a security system that is more effective when placed further out in front of the home. While the idea of marking doorposts to ensure divine protection dates to the Exodus from Egypt (see Exodus 12:23), Rabbi Hanina offers a different image:
Rabbi Hanina says: Come and see that the attribute of flesh and blood is not like the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He. The attribute of flesh and blood is that a king sits inside his palace, and the people protect him from the outside, whereas with regard to the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He, it is not so. Rather, His servants, the Jewish people, sit inside their homes, and He protects them from the outside. As it is stated: “The Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade upon your right hand.” (Psalms 121:5)
Today, mezuzahs come in all shapes and sizes, but some things haven’t changed in 2,000 years: In accordance with Rav Zeira, Jews still place their mezuzahs on the upper third of the doorpost. And despite Maimonides admonishing us not to view a mezuzah as an amulet (Hilchot Tefillin 5:4), many still think of it that way. Universally, however, a mezuzah is a sign of Jewish identity the world over.
Read all of Menachot 33 on Sefaria.
This piece originally appeared in a My Jewish Learning Daf Yomi email newsletter sent on February 13, 2026. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter, sign up here.
